Help, help. Get that citizen journalist out of that box!!!!

Okay. Perhaps the title shouldn’t be taken that seriously.

Citizen Journalism in a Box is a toolkit that will “provide accessible and effective training materials on selected free software tools and web applications with a focus on giving people what they need to know in order to create and distribute content. The materials will cover print publishing, using images, online publishing and audio.”

It comes to us from the Tactical Technology Collective, the makers of “NGO in a Box.”

One thing that I’ve written about before is the need for a citizen network in a box, which I call “Community in a Box.” Sure, that sounds like an oxy-moron, but consider events like Virginia Tech, the Los Angeles fires, and Katrina. Those aren’t just moments for citizen journalism to shine. They are moments when citizen journalism and networks of people online NEED to form.

I remember during Katrina when Craigslist played a surprising role. In the recent LA fires Twitter ended up being a major source for news and information.

So what are the tools that are needed to form a “community in a box”? When disaster strikes and a community or network of citizen journalists is needed to inform the greater public, what tools do we turn to? And when will those be packaged?

The Citizen Journalsit in a Box toolkit is due out sometime this month.